Healthy weight loss goals tend to revolve around losing one to two pounds of weight per week. With about 3,500 calories in one pound of fat, that means cutting about 500 calories every day, seven days a week to see one pound of weight loss.
Sometimes, however, cutting 500 calories can sound daunting. Plus, it can be beneficial to start with small changes and then work your way up, so why not start with how to cut 200 calories?
The good news is that there are lots of simple dietary changes you can make to ensure that cutting 200 calories per day is easier
than ever. After all, a major part of weight loss (albeit not the only part!) comes down to the whole calories in and calories out thing; if you're eating way more calories then you're burning, weight gain will ensue.
So, here are five, simple things you can do to easily cut calories every day of the week!
Trash Two Hundred
1. You are what you drink.
You wouldn’t believe the calories one simple beverage can pack. Take a grande caramel frappuccino from Starbucks: that’s 280 calories right there — and that’s even when you order it with skim milk! What about a grande chai tea latte? 240 calories. (Click here for nutritional info on their drinks.)
This isn’t just exclusive to Starbucks, by the way; one medium Iced Capp from Tim Horton’s has 360 calories, 15g of fat, and 47g of sugar!!!! (My mouth actually just dropped). Read more about the nutritional info at Tim’s here.
Cut out those sugary beverages and you’ll not only save money, but a very easy 200+ calories.
2. Eat in.
There’s a reason why food at a restaurant tastes so much better than what you make in your own kitchen; chefs know that the secret to delicious food is finding the perfect ratio of sugar, fat, and salt — and they don’t care what those amounts are. This might be a good thing for your taste buds, but it can do some serious damage to your waist line. Think that supreme chicken breast at The Keg is a healthy choice? Its 700 calories and 1,059mg of sodium might make you think otherwise. Your side baked potato adds another 556 calories, by the way.
Eating out for lunch is also a surefire way to pack on the pounds and drain your bank account.
Stick to that brown paper bag lunch and make as many of your own meals as possible!
3. Eat breakfast.
It might sound backwards to recommend eating to lose 200 calories, but trust me on this one. Look, we’ve all been there; we wake up super gung-ho about losing weight and vow to not eat anything all day as a way of dropping pounds, but you’re setting yourself up for disaster. Your bodily instincts and urges will take over whether you like it or not and you’ll end up eating everything in sight come dinner time — the worst time to gorge down calories. Don’t believe me? Watch how successful your day is diet-wise next time you skip your morning meals. It’s just science.
4. Watch your portions.
Just because something is healthy doesn’t mean you should eat 20 portions of it. Take an avocado, for example… Ever since its health properties became known, people started eating the stuff like candy. Sure, avocados have a ton of health benefits, but just one has 322 calories with almost 77% of those calories being pure fat. While this fat is the good kind of monounsaturated fat, eating guacamole like it's going out of style isn't always the best decision.
Read your food labels and crack out those measuring cups if you have to; it makes a huge difference!
5. Sweat the small stuff.
What are you putting in your coffee in the morning? How much honey are you adding to that yoghourt every day? What about those office sweets that are always lying around — are you snacking on those all day? Be mindful of what you’re eating and remember that mindless eating and snacking can really add up.
The Bottom Line
I don’t want you to turn into one of those people that brings a food scale to dinner parties; I more so want you to be conscious of what you’re eating. The truth is, cutting 200 calories a day is shockingly simple if you just make some simple decisions. Take it one day at a time and remember that every healthy choice you make takes you one step closer to your health and wellness goals!
You Tell Me!
Did you ever find out one of your favourite snacks or foods was actually shockingly bad for you (like when I realized an oat bar from Starbucks is actually the devil reincarnate)? Let me know in the comments below!
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